Stoic virtues - Justice

The definition of justice

Marcus Aurelius thought that justice was the most important of the virtues, because the others are worthless unless executed with justice in mind. What good is courage if it is self-interested? What good is wisdom if not put to use in the benefit of others?

Quotes on justice

Marcus Aurelius, Meditations, 9.31: “And a commitment to justice in your own acts. Which means: thought and action resulting in the common good. What you were born to do.”

Stoics looked at justice not in the legal sense that we think of it today, but rather, in the broader scope of our interactions with other people. Cicero summed it up with the following points: - That no one do harm to another - That one use common possesions as common; private as belonging to their owners - We are not born for ourselves alone - Men were brought into being for the sake of men, that they might do good to one another - We ought to follow nature as a guide, to contribute our part to the common good - Good faith, steadfastness, and truth

Unjustice is explained by Cicero as anything that inflicts harm on another being. “For the most part, men are induced to inure others in order to obtain what they covet.”

Sympetheia is a very buddhist philosophy and coveted by the Stoics, held dearly - the belief that mutual interdependence among everything exists in the universe, that we are all one. Marcus said “What injures the hive injures the bee.” Marcus’ favorite stoic teacher, Epictetus, said “Seeking the very best in ourselves means actively caring for the welfare of other human beings.” And Epictetus’ teacher, Musonius Rufus, said “to honor equality, to want to do good, and or a person, being human, to not want to harm human beings - this is the most honorable lesson and it makes just people out of those who learn it.”

Epictetus: “Seeking the very best in ourselves means actively caring for the welfare of other human beings